Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a deicing system configured for use with a fluid receptacle, such as a livestock water tank, and more particularly, to a deicing system that operates to deactivate a heating element by detecting changes in capacitance and/or resistivity.
Heating or deicing systems have been used to maintain unfrozen areas in water tanks for livestock, fish ponds, and the like. A typical deicing system includes a heater coil that may operate at a high output, such as 1500 Watts. The heat from the coil is transferred to water contained within the tank to keep it from freezing. Many tanks employed for this purpose are metallic, plastic, or other such materials.
If the heater coil continues to operate when the water level in the tank recedes to a point in which the heater coil directly contacts a surface of the tank, the temperature of the heater coil may heat the surface of the tank to a point in which it is dangerous to touch. In fact, the heater coil may cause the surface of some tanks to melt, or ignite.
Typically, thermostats are connected to the heater coil via a thermal path, and operate to deactivate the heater coil if the heater coil gets too hot, as it would if the water level in the tank drops such that the heater coil is exposed to air. If the thermostat is faulty, or only a portion of the heater coil is exposed to air, the heater coil may become extremely hot and present a potential fire hazard. For example, if a portion of the heater coil is exposed to air, but the portion connected to the thermostat is submerged in liquid, the thermostat may not detect the increased temperature of the portion exposed to the air. The exposed portion may contact the surface of the tank and pose the hazards mentioned above.
Thus, a need exists for a safer and more reliable system and method of operating and deactivating a deicing system within a fluid receptacle.